Burn Again

Chapter Fourteen

"No, my Lord, I would agree whole-heartedly," Melderion said as he gathered the strewn papers together. "I myself cannot see where this request for a change to the trade deal would benefit the realm."

"That is because it would not," the King retorted. "They are greedy. They want everything on their terms, and are difficult to reason with. Stubborn. Hard-headed. Obstinate. Tenacious. And they lack personal hygiene. They smell."

The aide struggled to compose himself as he felt laughter bubble up inside him over his ruler's irritation. "Not every race holds our standards, my Lord," he replied as evenly as he could manage.

An eyebrow lifted. "No race could meet our standards," he corrected haughtily. He drummed his fingers on the surface of the desk. "Where is Lady Elu?" he demanded.

"I am unaware of her whereabouts, my Lord, but I shall hasten to find out," he replied, and scuttled off before his laughter broke through. Thranduil was fearsome when in a foul mood, but often he found him quite comical when he was irritated solely for the purpose of being irritated.

He returned to the King's study a short while later, having found where the elleth in question was. "My Lord, Lady Elu is helping one of the maids replace the candles on the chandelier in the dining hall," he informed.

"Very good," he replied, his gaze focused on the scenery outside the window. "I intend on taking these trade requests to the Council meeting- what did you say? She is doing what?!"

Melderion straightened his face with every ounce of strength he had as Thranduil whipped round in the seat at speed to glare at him.

"She is helping-"

"I heard what you said!" he snapped as he rose from the chair. "Good grief! Can I not leave her alone for even a single moment without she is getting up to some sort of dangerous activity? Do I have to put her in the dungeons when I am unable to keep an eye on her?" Long strides carried him across the room and out of the door, and his aide gave in to his laughter as he disappeared.

He marched along the corridors, down stone steps, through archways and back up more steps, his cloak swirling around him as he walked. Reaching the dining hall, he stopped and stared at the sight before him in disbelief.

The large wooden table was in the usual place running down the centre of the massive room. A heavy seat had been placed up on top of it. Balanced on top of that, wobbling precariously as she stood on her tip-toes replacing the candles, was Elu. One hand gripped the heavy chandelier as the other twisted a thick white candle down onto the protruding spike. The maid she was supposed to be assisting stood on the floor with an armful of candles to pass up to her.

Thranduil powered forward with anger in his steps as he closed the distance between them.

Elu squealed in fright as two strong hands gripped her waist and lifted her down as though she weighed nothing. She turned as she was set down onto her feet, anger blazing in her blue eyes.

The look on his face stopped her immediately.

"Take your leave," he ordered the maid, not taking his eyes off her.

The servant vanished promptly.

"Tell me, my Lady...why do I have servants for such tasks when you insist on shouldering the burden?" he questioned. His low voice was soft, warning her of impending danger.

"I...I wanted to...uhm..." She trailed off, not knowing how to answer without causing the spark that would be the catalyst for his temper.

The ice in his eyes started to melt. "Elu," he whispered, stepping closer to her and framing her face with his hands. "Can you not see how precious you are to me? How much the dangerous things you do drives me out of my mind?" His eyes searched hers. "I cannot...I cannot understand...I only wish to protect you. Can you not see that, my love?"